


you love me (one day later)

by feldie



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Canon Lesbian Relationship, F/F, Fluff, Fluff without Plot, Love Confessions, Mutual Pining, One Shot, Pining, Post-Canon, Romantic Fluff, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Useless Lesbians
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-18
Updated: 2020-05-18
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:21:38
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 743
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24252754
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/feldie/pseuds/feldie
Summary: "When I wake from dreaming, tell me, is it really love? How will I know?"Season 5 spoilersWhile Bright Moon and Etheria celebrate their victory over Horde Prime, Catra and Adora finally get to talk about what happened at the Heart of Etheria.
Relationships: Adora & Catra (She-Ra), Adora/Catra (She-Ra)
Comments: 11
Kudos: 322





	you love me (one day later)

Bright Moon celebrates—Horde Prime is gone, and they've won.

Even though the damage left behind will take years to make right, Etheria has all the time it needs.

Inside the castle's throne room, where all the princesses gather and magic hums in the air, Adora watches Catra, who's smirking at Glimmer and Bow while they dance clumsily, both of them laughing. Across the room, Frosta makes ice she shoots at the windows before Scorpia blasts them apart with lightning to shower snow down on the guests, and Perfuma admonishes them to be careful, nervously leaving flowers in her wake as she follows them. Entrapta shows Hordak and Wrong Hordak the tech built into the castle, her overly excited voice loud enough to carry over everyone else's. Wrong Hordak winks at everything and everyone, while Hordak still seems unsure of his place. Mermista and Sea Hawk fell asleep at a table hours ago, Sea Hawk's head resting on Mermista's shoulder.

Everyone has been up all night, and Adora is more tired and happy than she's ever been. The first light of dawn feathers the edge of a gray sky beyond the windows, but the city still teems with singing. With magic. With freedom.

Adora is home. Catra is home. Everyone here, they're all home and safe for the first time in years.

Adora leans against the wall, head resting against stone, and closes her eyes.

"Hey, Adora."

Adora's eyes fly open—she must have dozed off—and smiles when she sees who it is. "Catra."

"You should get some sleep." Catra smirks, arms crossed over her chest. "Can't have people talking about how She-Ra fell asleep at her own party. That would be so embarrassing for you."

Even though Adora would usually argue, tonight, she needs to let herself rest. She _deserves_ to rest. Maybe she won't toss and turn tonight. Maybe, even in her sleep, there will be no one left to fight.

"Walk me to my room?" Adora asks.

Catra's smirk turns into a grin as she holds out a clawed hand, and Adora takes it, winding their fingers together.

A golden glow sparks to life in Adora's chest as they sneak out the side of the throne room, and spreads through her like magic as they quietly walk the castle's halls. Her mind skips backwards through the last few days, her tiredness letting the memories come more easily. She remembers the failsafe glowing in her chest, Horde Prime's infection as it wound down into the Heart of Etheria, and the way Catra had been the only thing that had brought her back—the knowledge Adora deserves love, too. Because she'd been needed her whole life—for what she could do for other people, the magic of She-Ra that could save the world. But it had been _her_ Catra loved, _Adora's_ name Catra had called into the darkness when Adora had thought it was over, and she'd failed.

"Catra," Adora says. "When we were in the Heart... when you said you loved me. Why were you yelling?"

Catra looks at her, confused and blushing at the question. "I wasn't yelling. Why would I yell that?"

"You weren't?" Adora frowns. "I thought..."

"I didn't even know you could hear me," Catra admits, her hand tightening around Adora's. "I just—I just needed you to hear it, okay? Even if I whispered it. I thought I was going to lose you."

_Don't you get it? I love you. I always have._

The way Catra screamed it echoes through Adora's head. "Why would I have heard it so differently?"

"I've been saying it to myself for a long time. It hurt to say any louder. I didn't think—" Catra growls, ears flattening. "I didn't think you felt the same way."

A whisper for Catra, because it was always obvious to her. A scream for Adora, because it was a confession, something brand new and terrifying. And both of them had to reach out their hands if they wanted it.

_Stay._

Adora wants to stay. She's going to.

Adora pulls them to a halt, smiling, and faces Catra. "You love me."

"You're such an idiot, Adora," Catra says, but there's love in her eyes.

"Well, I love you, too." Adora cups Catra's jaw in her hand, and leans in. "So I guess I am."

Even though the damage will take years to make right, Etheria has all the time it needs—and so does Adora.


End file.
